A region, defined by an enclosure, (e.g., hotel rooms, offices, laboratories, buildings, cruise ships, airport terminals, and the like) may be decontaminated by exposing the region (and any articles therein) to a vaporous chemical agent, such as vaporized hydrogen peroxide. Vaporized hydrogen peroxide may be generated by vaporizing a metered quantity of an aqueous solution of hydrogen peroxide (e.g., about 30% to 59% hydrogen peroxide, by weight). The vaporized hydrogen peroxide is carried into the region by a carrier gas (e.g., air). As used herein the term “decontamination” refers to the inactivation of bio-contamination, and includes, but is not limited to, sterilization and disinfection.
Conventional systems for decontaminating a region vaporize an aqueous solution of hydrogen peroxide using heat. In some applications, the vaporized hydrogen peroxide is produced by dripping an aqueous solution of hydrogen peroxide onto a heated surface. The hydrogen peroxide vaporizes upon contact with the heated surface. In other applications, the aqueous solution of hydrogen peroxide is injected into a stream of heated air. The heated air causes the aqueous solution of hydrogen peroxide to vaporize upon injection therein. Conventional systems, such as those described above, require relatively large amounts of power (e.g., 10,000 watts) to generate the vaporized hydrogen peroxide.
The present invention overcomes the aforementioned problem and provides a method and apparatus that effectively and efficiently vaporizes hydrogen peroxide at an ambient air temperature in a region.